Xosé Manuel Beiras facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Xosé Manuel Beiras
Xosé Manuel Beiras in 2015
Member of the Parliament of Galicia
In office 13 November 2012 – 21 October 2016
Constituency	A Coruña
In office 24 November 1985 – 19 June 2005
Constituency	A Coruña
Personal details
Born	Xosé Manuel Hixinio Beiras Torrado (1936-04-07) 7 April 1936 (age 89) Santiago de Compostela, Spain
Political party	Encontro Irmandiño (2007–present) Renewal–Nationalist Brotherhood (2012–present)
Other political affiliations	Galician Socialist Party (1963–1977) Galician Nationalist Bloc (1982–2012)
Alma mater	University of Santiago de Compostela
Profession	Economist

Xosé Manuel Hixinio Beiras Torrado (born 7 April 1936) is an important Galician politician, economist, and writer. He is a professor of Structural Economy at the University of Santiago de Compostela. He used to be a member of the Galician Nationalist Bloc (BNG). Currently, he leads a political party called Renewal–Nationalist Brotherhood. He has also served as a member of the Galician parliament.

His Early Life and Studies

Xosé Manuel Beiras finished his law degree in 1957 at the University of Santiago de Compostela. After that, he moved to Paris to study economics at the University of the Sorbonne. He also learned French language and literature there.

In 1960, he started teaching political economy at the Complutense University of Madrid. A year later, in 1961, he went to London to study more at the London School of Economics.

Research and Return to Galicia

From 1966 to 1967, Beiras received a special scholarship. This allowed him to do research in Paris with a famous economist named François Perroux. During his time in France, he learned about "internal colonialism" from Robèrt Lafont. This idea, about how one part of a country can be treated like a colony, became important in his political ideas.

He helped edit the Revista de Economia da Galiza (Galician Journal of Economics) from 1963 to 1968. In 1967, he won an award for his book about development in rural Galicia. In 1968, he moved back to Galicia for good. He started working as a lecturer in economics at the University of Santiago de Compostela.

In 1970, he published his doctoral paper, which was about the population of Galicia. This paper earned him a special award and a job as an associate professor.

Becoming a Professor

In 1972, he published another key book, O atraso económico da Galiza (The Economic Underdevelopment of Galicia). He became a temporary dean at the university in 1975. He also led a research project about making agriculture in Galicia more modern.

In 1977, he was invited to join the Real Academia Galega (The Royal Galician Academy). This is an important institution for the Galician language. However, he left in 1982 because he disagreed with their language policies. In 1980, Beiras became a head professor of structural economy at the University of Santiago de Compostela, where he still teaches. In the 1980s, he wrote many books about literature, economics, and politics. He also translated French classic books into Galician.

His Political Journey

Xosé Manuel Beiras was one of the people who started the Galician Socialist Party in 1963. This was a secret group during the time of Francoist Spain. In 1964, he became responsible for international relations. This allowed him to connect with many Socialist groups in Europe. He later became the Secretary General of the party in 1971. However, he resigned in 1977 after the party did not do well in the first democratic elections in Spain.

Leading the Galician Nationalist Bloc

In 1982, Beiras helped create the BNG (Galician Nationalist Bloc). He became a member of its main board. In 1985, he won a seat in the Galician Parliament. He slowly became the main leader of Galician nationalism.

Beiras led the BNG to its best results ever in 1997. Almost 25 percent of voters supported the party. In 2004, he made agreements with nationalist parties from Catalonia and Basque Country. This was to get more attention and political power in the Spanish Parliament.

Stepping Back and New Roles

In 2004, he decided not to run for the Galician presidency in the next election. He planned to slowly leave politics. However, he was not happy with how the BNG was working after he stepped down. So, he started a group called Encontro Irmandinho within the party. This group wanted to make the party more open and democratic.

After leaving the main leadership of BNG, Beiras became active in anti-globalization movements. These movements work against the negative effects of globalization. He joined groups like Altermundo and the World Social Forum (WSF). In 2008, he was invited to join the council of the WSF. Beiras also helped start a political foundation called Galiza Sempre. He has been its president since 1999.

His Writings

Beiras has written many books and articles about politics and economics. He is also interested in literature and music, and he plays the piano very well. He helped create publishing companies like Editorial Galaxia and Edicións Laiovento. He writes regularly for the newspaper Galicia Hoxe. Sometimes, his articles appear in A Nosa Terra and the cultural journal Grial.

Selected Works

• Antígona (translation into Galician of Jean Anouilh's Antigone, with Xosé Luís Franco Grande), 1959
• O problema do desenrolo na Galiza rural, 1967
• Introducción á economía galega de hoxe (Beiras et al.), 1969
• Estructura y problemas de la población gallega, 1970
• O atraso económico de Galiza, 1972
• A Galiza rural na encrucillada, 1975
• Contaminación industrial e desenvolvimento, 1975
• O atraso e Nós. Aportación para un debate encol o atraso económico, 1982
• Dende Galiza: Marx. Homenaxe a Marx no 1º centenario da súa morte (Beiras et al.), 1984
• Por unha Galiza liberada, 1984
• Constitución española e nacionalismo galego: unha visión socialista, 1985
• Cartas a un amigo alemán (translation into Galician of Albert Camus' Lettres à un ami allemand), 1987
• Os xustos (translation into Galician of Albert Camus' Les Justes), 1987
• Prosas de combate e maldicer, 1991
• O estado da nación, 1996
• A poboación galega no século XX (with A. López Rodríguez), 1999

See also

In Spanish: Xosé Manuel Beiras para niños

• Galician nationalism
• Galician Nationalist Bloc